Buzz Blog

JulieAnn Carter-Winward

Quite
frequently when talking with an author, much like the interview
today, we discuss the impact of digital media on the medium. As we continue to progress every form of entertainment toward some form of digitization, the idea that one day most written literature will be found on a tablet or monitor of some kind is inevitable, even if some companies continue to distribute the traditional way. For a number of authors they've dropped the bindings and moved forward with that progress willingly, embracing the new technology as they pen new works.

--- Writer JulieAnn Carter Winward has been voicing her opinions online via her blog, "Ravings Of A Semi-Mad Woman", since 2006. As well as producing her own brand of erotica over three different books during this time. While her first title found physical pages, the others have been exclusively online via Amazon, taking her audience into the digital age while still keeping her thoughts and subject material very earthly, angsty and lusty. Today JulieAnn chats about her career and blog, moving into online publishing, thoughts on local writers and a few other topics. All with shots of her interacting with fans, and a few selections of artwork she's created in recent years.

JulieAnn:
Well I'm a snappy dresser. I think that's important. I'm happily
married to another writer--a brilliant poet and writer, who has a day
job as an attorney. We have five kids between us, the majority of
them adults, which is why my eye twitches like this. They are all
great kids, though. They range from 8 to 22 years old. The eight
year old is the only boy, and parenting him is a piece o' cake
comparatively. No offense to my daughters, but girls are just more
complex. This isn't because of anything biological or personal. I
feel our culture makes it harder to raise girls. We are supposed to
raise them and somehow imbue them with strength, femininity,
pragmatism and a great self-esteem. Then the popular media goes about
destroying those attempts. When I'm not writing and doing the 'mom'
thing, I'm also a painter. I took up painting in 2008, and for some
unknown reason, people really like my work. I paint in
impressionistic/abstract style and a lot of people like how I paint
portraits and the female form. I enjoy painting because it gives the
more analytical part of my brain a rest. It's a medium for the
creativity I feel that doesn't exhaust me the way writing does. They
both require a tremendous amount of concentration and focus, but it's
as though the creativity I use to paint counter-balances the
creativity I use to write.

Gavin:
What first got you into writing and what were some of your favorite
titles and authors over the years?

JulieAnn:
Well, I had a knack for writing at a young age. Conveying what I
felt via words seemed to agree with me. By second grade I was reading
with the sixth graders. I think when I wrote my first poem, that's
when I knew writing was magical. To be able to paint feelings across
a canvas and have them be so nuanced and multi-layered all with the
use of words... that fascinated me. It still fascinates me. When
someone can take a collection of words, put them together, and make
another person laugh or cry--that's magical. My summers as a child
were not spent at friends' houses or out riding my bike. My mother
took me to the library and I'd stack as many books in my arms as I
could carry. I did this all throughout Jr. High, too. I was a total
geek. I devoured books. I would literally curl up on the couch with a
snack and read for hours on end. When I found an author I liked, I'd
read everything that author put out and I would grieve the end of a
book or series. I had my mother's collection to choose from
downstairs when I didn't get to the library, along with some of my
brother's old college texts. I read my fist college book in
elementary school--Edith Hamilton's Mythology. I became obsessed with
Greek Mythology. I stripped all of my Barbies naked (I was a Barbie
geek, too) and wrapped them all in some spare material mom had around
the house. They all wore togas. I reenacted the myths with my
Barbies. This early exposure to mythology really paved the way for me
to leave my church when I got older. But don't tell anybody, or
they'll ban education. I read James Clavell's Shogun probably six
times. I read Mary Stewart, Taylor Caldwell--lots of romance novels
because that was my mom's penchant. My mother told me that Caldwell
had a novel published when she was in her teens. That inspired me. My
material also included Ayn Rand, Steinbeck, Cervantes, Voltaire,
Shakespeare, Arthur Miller, Virginia Woolf and Robert Frost. I read
the complete--cover to cover--works of Shakespeare while in 6th
grade. I didn't have to think about the words, they floated in me and
through me and were beautiful, even though I may not have followed
the story exactly. I continually pushed my limits as a reader. When I
was in Honor's and AP English, I felt as though life finally had
meaning as I read the Existentialists. I know, hysterically ironic.
The general feel of Camus and Sartre... Kierkegaard matched my
general mood which amounted to "Who gives a shit? We're all
going to die anyway." I can safely say that by the time I was
17, I'd lost my faith in everything. They called it "clinical
depression". I call it reality. Meh, semantics. I didn't return
to any of the romance novels once I found literature. And once I
found actual romance. Romance in real life was nothing like in the
novels; all that romance novels did was serve to make my little heart
palpitate with love at the slightest provocation. It ended badly for
me most every time. So to this day I don't read, write or watch
romance--anything. I find it trite, tiresome and predictable. Sorry
romance fans. Personal opinion. Some of my favorite authors are
Robert Olen Butler, Jane Smiley, Chuck Palahniuk, Anne Rice, Judy
Blume, Anais Nin, Henry Miller, Brady Udall, Milan Kundera, Carole
Maso, and Ian McEwan. Poetry is a huge inspiration for me, so David
Whyte, Mary Oliver, Sylvia Plath, Dickenson, Frost, Edna St. Vincent
Millay, Sharon Olds., Marge Piercy, Bukowski... gee, I did go on and
on, didn't I? Hey, you asked.

Gavin:
Did you take any formal education in writing and literature prior to
writing?

JulieAnn:
Only a few classes in college. One college professor told me that he
hoped I had considered writing as a profession. At the time, no, I
had not. It wasn't because I didn't want to, but rather a strange
addiction I had to eating, having a roof over my head etc. It had
been hammered into me by my pragmatic parents that being an
artist/writer was impractical. No one becomes a writer for the money.
And if they do, they're in for a surprise. I have been writing a long
time, and I've been working on improving my craft for a long time.
There are some strengths I possess as a writer that can't be taught,
like timing and voice. My timing, I've been told, is very good, my
voice natural and engaging. These are things that classrooms can't
teach you. Classrooms, I feel, are important so you can learn the
nuts and bolts of writing, and it also forces a person who may not
have the discipline to write every day. What a classroom can
destroy, however, is the artistic flow, the process of inspiration,
the "magic" of writing. I don't intend to say that
education is a bad thing. The demystification of certain things is
important. Where would we be if we still thought babies coming into
the world was magic? But writing is a careful balance of craft and
art. Every writer has a different process. Mine is more organic, but
I've had to learn to be more analytical. I think this is an easier
problem than the reverse. I knew a writer once with a BA and MFA who
told me that it took him years to get his education, but even longer
to forget it. I think that's a fair assessment of it. To develop your
own style and voice comes from within and not everyone will like your
insides. If your professor doesn't like your insides, he or she will
ask you to conform to their standard. This is how a natural voice can
be lost. Will I insist my children go to college and learn to write
well? Absolutely. But I also hope to impart the idea that conformity
for a grade is different than conforming for approval.

Gavin:
What sparked your interest in writing more romantic and erotica
material?

JulieAnn:
Well, as I said earlier, I don't write romance. Nothing in my
writings or stories convey romance. This is because I prefer reality.
Romance is not reality. Sex is. Sex is a reality, for better or
worse, in all of our lives. If it weren't for sex, we wouldn't be
here, obviously. I wrote my first erotica short story a few years
back and won an award and a publishing contract. I just have a gift
for the nasties. Seriously, though, Judy Blume's Wifey was my first
naughty story I'd ever read. I actually pilfered it from my Bishop's
book collection in his basement. I can only assume it was his wife's
book and she never intended an eleven-year old to get her hands on
it. She was pretty uptight, so I hope the book helped her unclench a
little. Sex and sensuality play a huge part in all of my books. I
attribute this to the fact that I'm a very sexual, sensual being and
it's totally interconnected with my creativity. I celebrate sexuality
in all of my work, but not in a false, romantic way; I like reality
and sex is real and glorious in all of its permutations. Ironically,
for all my posturing about the bullshit of romance, I literally live
the most romantic life ever ! Haha. My husband is honestly the
most romantic man I've ever met, so I can't say I don't believe in
romance anymore--I just think it's very rare.

Gavin:
How did the idea come about to officially start work on a
novel?

JulieAnn:
I'd written a juvenile non-fiction book based on Tarot cards. Back
then, tarot cards were still considered "of the debil", so
publishers didn't show much interest. It was about the time Harry
Potter came out and I remember thinking to myself, "Man, it's
too bad I don't write fiction!" Suddenly, my first novel, a YA
fiction, opened up to me--Life In A NutsHell, completely, from start
to finish. I was like, "Holy shit this is awesome!" The
other novels just came pouring in one after another after that.
Ravings Of A Mad Woman was my third novel and my first adult fiction.
Judy Blume definitely had an influence on that one.

JulieAnn:
This is a true story. I had a really good Mormon friend who showed
up at my house one day and she was crying. She told me that she found
out her husband looked at porn. I tried to sympathize, I really did,
but I told her that looking at porn was... normal. She said "For
eight hours at a time?!" All of a sudden, the reality of what
she said hit me: What if you were in a religion, a female in a
religion, run by men, and your beliefs taught you that the only way
you can get to your heaven is through your marriage to your eternal
mate? And what if that mate endangered your eternal salvation by
breaking the rules? The thoughts of such a puritanical (when it comes
to sex) religion juxtaposed with the prospect of sexual addiction
fascinated me. So I wrote Ravings.

Gavin:
What was the process like for you while writing it and defining
those characters?

JulieAnn:
Interestingly I fell victim to some stereotypes, but they were sort
of periphery, so they worked. The coffee clatch, the distant mother,
the sweet but elderly and demented father... but I tried very hard to
stay away from LDS stereotypes. For instance, in one scene, I have
two visiting teachers visit a strip club to come rescue my main
character, who had passed out from dehydration. How many Mormon
visiting teachers would do that? Maybe a few. Maybe not. But I tried
very hard to make each character very human and real. I mean, it's
really hard to feel sorry for my main character because while she
rages about her husband's porn proclivity, she has an affair with her
dentist. It's really hard to hate the husband because he's a really
nice guy and great father. I know a lot of LDS people, including my
family. They are just as moral and good as anyone else and they are
trying their best. I think too many "ex" Mormon authors try
to demonize the LDS Church through their characters. I think if you
separate the people from the religion, you'd find that we are all
pretty much the same. As Plato said, "Be kind, for everyone is
fighting a hard battle." We all seek the same things, we just go
about the search in different ways. Too many people think that
Ravings is autobiographical. Every writer pulls their life into their
work. With that definition, every work of fiction is
autobiographical. Don't tell Phillip Roth. About half-way through the
book, my life did take a strange turn. I found that my husband at the
time was looking at porn, not just occasionally, which I would have
shrugged off, but consistently and for long periods of time. This
changed how I wrote the book--dramatically, and infused it with
emotional nuances that may have not been available to me had it not
happened.

Gavin:
Was there a lot of rewrite work to it or did everything just kind of
fall into place?

JulieAnn:
Yes and no. Or no and yes. As a writer you become blind to your own
work; it's almost impossible to see typos and mistakes. That's why
writers don't edit their own work. My publishing company at the time
thought it would be a great idea to make me do all the edits. I was a
complete newbie in the industry. When they offered me a contract, I
took it. I should have held out. I should have hired an editor.
Shoulda, coulda, woulda. The point is, rewriting is the story (no
pun) of every writer's life. The story itself fell into place and
then toward the end it stalled. I think it stalled because I had no
idea if the main character would stay married to her addict
husband--or not. This predicament strangely echoed my own life. I had
to consciously separate myself from my life and go into hers, realize
what her particular set of circumstances were and how she should
proceed. Once I did that, the end was easy.

Gavin:
Did you show it to anyone prior to finding a publisher?

JulieAnn:
No, I didn't have time. I was offered the contract within a month of
finishing. In hindsight I should have done a lot more to get it
ready.

Gavin:
You had actually started up your blog prior to the first release.
Why did you choose to do that rather than wait for publication and
response?

JulieAnn:
I really didn't see the potential for publicity through a blog at
the time. I mean, no one will read it, right? Gah...! Now I get over
200 hits a week and I wonder how the word spreads. My whole life is
in there--all the uglies and personal stuff. But I don't regret
it... I enjoy being open. I am who I am. I had one local blogger
criticize me because I plan to release some YA fiction and my blog
has stories of vibrators, masturbation, sex and all sorts of things
young adults know nothing about. Ehem. Can you say Judy Blume? My
feeling is that she wants her blog have a certain "tone" of
professionalism to it. Bashing me in it notwithstanding. That's her
prerogative. My goal is to live my life out in the open as much as
possible and as long as it doesn't hurt people. Sometimes that's not
mutually exclusive and that's where I have to be careful. My new
publisher will have a writing blog for me through their press soon
and that blog will focus more on writing. My personal blog is just
that--and if people want the dirt and dish on me, it's there for the
asking.

Gavin:
What was it like early on writing to an unknown audience, and what
was that reception like?

JulieAnn:
I think any blogger starts out wondering who will choose to read.
I'm continually surprised at my following. Early on I wrote solely
for me. I told a few people about it and it was back when blogs were
just hitting their stride. Dooce was in full swing and I had hoped at
the time I could do what she was doing--blog for cash! Ha! But that
takes a lot more than a few hundred hits a month. And she had
national exposure because she'd gotten fired over it. The thing is, I
don't think any of us (bloggers) really know why we take off and
become popular. I know that my readers expect honesty, authenticity
and passion from me. What really blows my mind is there are people
who read my blog who are not exactly fans. I would even call them
detractors. It's a little creepy.

Gavin:
Did you feel any hesitation talking about your private life and
thoughts on life around you, or was it more liberating to expose
it?

JulieAnn:
The blog was very liberating at first. The medium of writing for me
helps me to uncover things about myself and situations that might
otherwise stay unconscious. Then I realized that I was being read by
unfriendly eyes, and I had to censor my blog, which really pissed me
off. I mean, who reads the blogs of people they dislike? I found at
the time that my soon-to-be ex-husband read it and I realized my
readers were only getting my voice, my perspective. It wasn't fair to
him, so I stopped the really personal things about him and focused on
a balanced picture--listed all of the good stuff about him, and
there's plenty. That was even more liberating.

Gavin:
When it finally got released what did you think of the public
reaction to it?

JulieAnn:
The reaction was surprisingly tepid among a lot of the local
stores. I had signings at Golden Braid--one that changed my life,
actually--more on that later, and Central Book Exchange in
Sugar House. A shout out to them for supporting a local author.
Gateway's Barnes & Noble held one for me, too. There were other
local bookstores--independent book sellers, that flat out refused to
sell the book, let alone help me promote it. I won't name names, but
at the time, they were carrying a book about the life of a call-girl
in SLC. When I asked them to read and carry Ravings, they said "We
don't carry that type of book here." They literally judged a
book by its cover. How cliché. City Weekly had just reviewed Ravings
and the only complaint was the twenty-one word title and sub-title!
Other than that, it was a very positive review, so the lack of other
community support was disappointing. Many stores saw the cover and
didn't want trouble from the LDS community. I tried to hire a PR
firm, and they flat-out refused me. The subject matter, when
mentioned in the same breath with Mormonism or the LDS religion, was
immediately rejected and treated with what can only be described as
mild panic. "Pornography Addiction? 'Mormons? Never!" Golden Braid
and CBE actually held events/readings for me, which was awesome. At
Golden Braid I met a fellow blogger and pot-stirrer who wrote in a
scandalous blog which shall remain nameless. He read and commented on
my blog every day, which was nice but also a little curious Hehe. I'd like to say he had a crush on me, but it was really my
writing that compelled him. This guy read my book, reviewed it on
his blog and invited me to discuss it, which I did. We argued like
Tracy and Hepburn online, all polite, innuendo and double-talk, but
butting heads nonetheless. He didn't agree with my premise at all,
and felt that the culture creates sex and porn addiction, therefore
they can't be classified as classic addictions. I disagreed--and we
still disagree. Yes, the blogger who dissed my book and stalked my
blog became my husband in August of 2008. It looks really bad on
paper because I had only been divorced officially for about three
weeks when he proposed. But the former mister and I had been living separate for more than a year and only stayed married for insurance
purposes. However, it was still a shock to most everyone--including
me, when my then-friend and fellow blogger fell head over heels in
love with me. I mean, who knew? It happened in what can only be
described as one of the hardest times in my life, and so it was a
very emotionally charged period.

Gavin:
Between books there's a four-year gap. What had you been doing
during this time and what motivated you to write another
novel?

JulieAnn:
I was actually writing more books. Hehe. There were also some huge
upheavals in my personal life, including a divorce, the death of both
of my parents within a year, and finally, my remarriage to my current
husband. After Ravings came out, I wrote a book Called Screwdriver:
Mormons, Swingers, Murder. It's a murder mystery involving a group of
Mormon swingers living on South Mountain in Draper and their
connection to the building of an LDS Temple there. I am aware that an
LDS Temple has indeed been built on South Mountain. At the time I
wrote the book, the plans for that temple hadn't been made public.
And yes, swingers are alive and well on South Mountain--I interviewed
a whole group of them. I'm really good at writing books, but the
business side--notsomuch. So I went on to write my next book,
Princess Of The Blood. It's the story of a suburban vampire in high
school who discovers she is in line to be sacrificed for the good of
all vampires on the Earth; she's just not feeling like a savior, so
she runs. The moment I sent this out to agents, Twilight hit the
scene. Meh, timing.

JulieAnn:
I didn't write them simultaneously--I just staggered the beginning
of TDTM in the middle of Falling edits and they were released at the
same time. I started Falling Back To Earth in 2006, and it was only
the first chapter. I let it rest, and in 2008 I was ready to write
it. I knew it would be gut-wrenching to write--a feeling. I was
right. It was like taking a potato peeler to my skin every day. Hard
to explain, but I went deep to create those characters. I re-wrote
Falling three times within one year--complete re-writes, almost
different books with the same characters, thanks to a New York
editor with whom I'd been working. Not that I'm complaining, she
helped a lot. However, I wanted to write a literary masterpiece, she
wanted me to write Dan Brown. Right before I began the arduous
re-writes and conclusion of Falling, I came up with the premise for
TDTM in the spring of 2009. I wrote the first scene in that, and then
let it rest. After the third and final re-write of Falling, I
recommenced TDTM. I was excited to write it. It was my
comic--albeit dark comic--relief. My goal was to write a Chuck
Palahniuk-esque book for women. My voice and style is very different
in TDTM. Reminds me of my sarcastic snark from Ravings a little bit.
That book came out fast and furious, but it was almost as painful--in
a different way, than Falling.

Gavin:
Was it hard for you separating the two stories at once, or was it
more of a swap working on each at a time

JulieAnn:
As I said, they were indeed staggered. Separating the stories wasn't
hard because I immerse myself so fully in them, it would be
impossible to be confused. It would be like visiting Paris, then
going to Istanbul. You wouldn't walk around Istanbul confused as to
the location of L' Arc de Triomphe. Each book is a mixture of hard
work, logic, plotting, planning, creativity and imagination. There
are people who say it's only an art; some say only a craft. I
believe, like any fine art, you must have a technical foundation of
craft within your framework of creativity. However, you can't teach
someone how to be inspired by life, people, situations, tragedy,
comedy. You can't teach them how to immerse themselves. I've had
things happen in my life that immediately would translate into a
scene. My stories all come from my ability to observe and watch life
around me. But I can't just watch. That's the coward's way. I watch,
then I plunge in, head first into the melee, whatever it might be. I
come out covered in the muck of experience and from that, I write.
Many writers equate writing to pain, as you can tell. I find those
writers who eschew that are great technical writers. No matter what,
for me, books hurt. But they hurt in a way that tells me I'm alive.
Some would ask why I do it when there are so many vocations out there
that don't "hurt". Haha! I guess you could say that I believe
that Life hurts, and it has always hurt. But in that fiery
realization, I know more joy and elation for having been through the
pain of it.

Gavin:
You also chose to have them published digitally as opposed to the
traditional paperback. What made you decide to go that route?

JulieAnn:
A lot of things. I'm not interested in a handful of friends and
family buying my book. I'm interested in becoming a career novelist.
I want fans. I want people to find me and devour everything I
write--these are the readers who own Nooks, Kindles, iPads etc. They
devour books, they don't buy a book every six months. I do feel for
people who want a hard copy in their hands, but most of these folks
have a smart phone or PC or laptop. My books are available in all of
those formats, so just because the hard copy isn't available, doesn't
mean you can't read them. With the digital age overtaking traditional
publishing, I see the days of large advances and celebrity authors
coming to a close. As I stated earlier, I want a solid fan base; I
want to be known as a great writer. Every book I write is a stepping
stone to another book that's better. It's not a quick process; it
takes patience and understanding of how the market works. I'm in it
for the long haul, not to make a quick buck, so digital publishing
made sense to me. Also, unless you are a celebrity or celebrity
author, traditional publishing is becoming more and more difficult to
break into. Once in a blue moon, someone comes along who snags the
hearts of teens and tweens everywhere, and that's great for them. The
agent's job is to sell, sell, sell. The publishers job is to make
money off of what sells. Sometimes, the books that are more action
and thriller or YA sell better than literary fiction. I write
literary fiction, and so my outlook is grim. As one agent told me,
"Don't tell people you write literary fiction; it's the kiss of
death." Apparently, literary fiction isn't interesting! Every
book for me is a way to push myself, challenge what I think I know
and perfect my craft. Readers get to read my books and watch the
progression. I would say that I'm an artist, but what artist doesn't
create with their fans in mind? I write stories I think people will
read. I'm not into verbal masturbation. Some writers think that
stream-of-consciousness "whatever comes out of my head and onto
the page is art", but they need to remember something: within
that framework of "artist", we also carry the pedestrian mantle of
"entertainer". We are creating something unique, beautiful,
edifying (hopefully) and entertaining. It can be the most beautifully
written book on the planet, but if readers aren't compelled to turn
the page, what's the point?

Gavin:
Are there any plans in the works for the next novel or are you kinda
kicking back for now and just concentrating on the blog?

JulieAnn:
I am writing another book called The Rub. The story is about two
families, four years after a suicide pact between a daughter from
each. One of the daughters survived. The book explores the impact the
death had on each individual, and how they can possibly find
redemption when each of them carries a modicum or more of guilt for
the death of the other girl. I also have another one baking. It might
look and smell like a sweet romance novel. It isn't. Haha!

Gavin:
Going local, what's your take on the local literary scene and the
writers coming out of it?

JulieAnn:
Well I've got to be honest here when I say I have no idea what's
going on locally. I'm pretty isolated in my little writing world.
Part of the struggle for me as a writer and a person is that I seem
to want isolation because I do tend to absorb so much. I don't watch
the news because the pain of seeing so much suffering can paralyze
me. I know many people feel that networking is the "key" to
success. I believe that that might be true, depending on your
definition of success. My definition of success is to get read.
People read my blog every day... I'm a success. People are buying my
books. Success. Whether or not I made a bundle of money has never
been my priority. Even as a single mother, money was a practical
reason for wanting to be well-known, but not the ultimate reason. I
want to be known as a great writer. That is success to me.

Gavin:
Is there anything you think could be done to make it more
prominent?

JulieAnn:
Well, yeah... but it's unrealistic. I think more writing groups could
get organized, local competitions, and maybe even writing conferences
could be brought here. But face it, every group has their hierarchy.
There are scads of local writers who think they are the bees knees
and they're much too good for conferences, workshops and groups.
Writers are a funny lot. Our egos can be very fragile. Writing is a
solitary business for a reason.

Gavin:
Do you have any advice for writers about their work and getting
published?

JulieAnn:
Yeah. Read Charles Bukowski's poem; So You Want To Be A Writer.
Decide if you want to take a potato peeler to your skin every day.
Choose to live in the moment and never shy away from the ugly, the
raw, the gaping wounds within yourself. That's where your work will
come from if you want it to be authentic. If you want to write about
puppies and love and cute romances, these rules don't apply. But if
you're serious about writing from your white hot center, as Robert
Olen Butler says, then that's where it has to come from. Read the
types of books you want to write. And if you say to yourself "Damn
it, I should write today." Then please don't. No one wants to
read a "Should-y" piece of writing. The publishing industry
is rapidly changing, as I've stated before. But one thing hasn't
changed--good writing is good writing. You want to get published and
you want people to read you? Be a damn good writer.

Gavin:
If you had to make a list, who are some of your favorite local
authors?

JulieAnn:
I've read only a couple. As well as being a personal friend, author
Natalie Collins writes great Mormon-themed romantic suspense.
Although a screenwriter, I thoroughly enjoy Neil LaBute's stuff,
even though he was only local for a minute. That list is bigger... I
really enjoy Brady Udall, too.

Gavin:
What are your thoughts on the local book stores and how they're
holing up against bigger chains?

JulieAnn:
I think small local bookstores are going to bounce back. They
couldn't survive against big bookstore chains, but now big book
stores can't survive the digital age. Smaller indy stores would do
well to carry and specialize in books that e-books can't format and
sell. Smaller bookstores need to embrace digital publishing, not
vilify it. Start selling Kindles at the small, local book stores
right next to the pictorial review of Nine Mile Canyon and Mormon
Handicrafts. There's plenty of room on the coattails of the digital
age. But too many people are afraid of change and resist rather than
accept and incorporate. Sounds like I'm doing a commercial for the
Borg, huh? Haha! Seriously, though, there's enough room for all
of us, and authors who are stubbornly holding out for big advances
and a NYC publishing contract are going to be waiting a long time
unless they are a celebrity or already a celebrity author.

Gavin:
Do you feel like books are in decline with digital publishing, or do
you believe there will always be an audience there for a hand-held
copy?

JulieAnn:
The "hand-held" audiences are not, in my opinion, obsessed
with books. They love to rhapsodize on the smell, feel, taste,
whatever, or "real books" but how many people will
sensually enjoy a book they hate from page one? Are they going to
keep reading because the smell and feel of the book is so exciting
and "real"? No. What we fall in love with are words. The
vellum Shakespeare wrote on isn't how we read Shakespeare
anymore--we've modernized. But his words are timeless. Frankly, I
don't think real readers are complaining about Nooks and Kindles and
iPads. The people who buy five or six books a month are reveling in
the ease of reading now. The people who buy a book every six months
and who don't own e-readers, these guys are the ones making the most
negative noise. I do think that hard copy books will be available,
but they will change. They will be limited editions, sold as art for
a price. They will have collectible value rather than practical
value. I mean, who wants to tote around five books at once when you can
tote all 300 on your Kindle?

Gavin:
What can we expect from you over the rest of the year and going into
next?

JulieAnn:
I have a finish time for The Rub mid-February. I have previous
novels such as Screwdriver and Princess Of The Blood that need
re-writes and edits. Life In A NutsHell, my other YA needs lots of
editing. I'm not worried about job security! Haha!

Gavin:
Is there anything you'd like to plug or promote?

JulieAnn:
My two books available digitally are out. Falling Back To Earth and
TDTM. Falling is about the eternal question of identity and how it
plays out with a woman who believes she was kidnapped and her real
identity erased. TDTM is about a prudish misanthrope who inherits a
pornography empire from her wayward, estranged mother, Estella.
Estella has a Q&A sex blog called Mom's Vice. I'm in the process
of putting up Mom's Vice and it should be available any moment! I plan to have a writing blog through my
publisher's website. That's under construction because they're
revamping how they want it to work. They want it to be more
interactive and not just a one-stop shop. Things are in progress Haha!. But I promise, if you want to find me, you'll be able to
find me. I'm not going anywhere.